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War of the Ninth Succession
The War of the Ninth Succession was a major civil war within the Kingdom of Eris over who would be the ninth successor to the throne of Eris in Kingskeep(see List of Erasii Kings). 'The Ninth Kingship' It's background lies in the twin sons of Thalron the Peacemaker, Aureon and Saen. At birth, the identical twin babies were mixed up and it was unknown which was born first. Thalron randomly chose Aureon as his successor, a day after the birth. Both sons grew up in the knowledge that Aureon would succeed Thalron. Thalron lived to a very old age and only on his deathbed confessed the nature of the birth. He suggested that Aureon's promising young son, called Thalron after his grandfather, ascend the throne. The 21-year-old man was thus crowned King Thalron II, becoming the ninth king of a unified Eris. But Thalron II was an ambitious man, no sooner was he on the throne, then he was planning a conquest of the lands of the peaceful barbarians. He believed missile and cavalry tactics would achieve what Daeneon Sarcrus could not. He gathered the third ever Grand Army in the realm and set off to a set of disastrous defeats. The Holy Council of the Realm of God, the lands of the peaceful barbarians, thought a lesson needed to be taught to the 'northern barbarians' and that the lives lost would be worth the long-term benefits. Thus they invaded the thinlands. Thalron II had to burn the Imperial Bridge to prevent the fall of the capital and Ilynaehal and Tirnavigae burned before the barbarian withdrawal. Thus he abdicated and entered the Temple of All Gods, on Royal Isle. 'Early Conflict' Whilst Saen had been a cavalry commander in the armies of Thalron II, Aureon had been close to his son and helped direct overall policy during the war. Based on this, Saen saw himself as much more fit to rule then his brother. He was prepared to listen to discussion though. Indecision and breakdown in communication saw near 7 months pass without a king being crowned. Saen suggested that it be put to the Gods, that they go before the High Priest in the Temple and let him decide, but Aureon did not want to put it to what he perceived as chance. 'Attack' In a vicous and sudden attack, Aureon crowned himself king. He had to act fast before Saen could flee and sent a hundred guards to apprehend him and his family in his quarters in the Kingskeep. The guards spread out around the palatial quarters, expecting him to already have found out about the coronation and to have fled. In fact the first Saen heard was when one of his guards who was at dinner came running. He managed to gather 20 guards together and flee. He ran into 30 Royal Soldiers loyal to Aureon. Their reluctance to hurt him helped and his cohort managed to fight so that Saen and his family got past, even though they couldn't defeat the force. They escaped through back passageways and out a sally port to the nearby Red Docks and Saen's private ship, the Lady of Fortune. Fortune indeed was on her side as she eluded the Imperial Fleet's six ships, whose Admiral had been bribed by Thaureon. From the lakeside, Saen acquired horses and, still with his mere ten guard, galloped to Southceil, where he knew his veteran turned merchant friend Sir Allan Manthos could get him a ship. He relied on his getting there ahead of Aureon's letters. From Southceil, he took a ship with Sir Manthos and twenty more men, some mere mercenaries, north and up the river feeder. Saen had friends everywhere and had many places he could have gone. He chose follow the rivers however to the castle of Waterswatch, where the great rivers of the Feeder, the Wells and the Fatherwater meet in a swirling cauldron. Lord Sanchil, Overlord of the Riverlands, was one of his dearest friends and they had fought side by side in the battle before the walls of Ilynaehal. His main goal was to rouse the northern provinces to his side- Aureon could have the half ruined summerlands and treacherous Hilte for all he cared, he would take back the throne. 'A Divided Nation' En route to Waterwatch, Saen had passed through the Vale of the Seven Lords and Valehall Keep. It just so happened that the Vale Senate was in session and Saen, after being granted safe passage, spoke at it. It hugely divided the Vale but he was allowed to leave in peace and all the Seven agreed that they would not declare either way unless he got support. Saen got this in Lord Sanchil's Edict of Forktown. Some Valian Lords were for Saen, some against, some ambiguous of undecided. This led to bitter conflict in the Vale and Glens and to the eruption of Endemic Warfare between the inhabitants. Lord Gatereon of Valehall Keep and Lord Stavaltheon of Staval Hall were the principal Saenian supporters. After the Valian Declarations, Lord Lichus of the Seaholds, himself an acquaintance of Saen, declared for him. Unfortunately his lords would not keep up his decision. The Eastrockii Lord Huoyton rose up openly for Thaureon, protesting at 'this most unlawful king' and rebelling. The people of Port Riversea also took the opportunity to rear up against their oppression (riversean taxes were particularly high to encourage trade to come down the Life of the East instead and not benefit the Vale, Riverlands or Marches). Direshores declared its support of Lord Lichus but adamantly refused to send troops. The North and Hilte meanwhile, both remained undecided for the time being and as such sent troops to neither side. Aureon had the unwavering support of Round Isle, Querl, the Forest, the Summerlands(which were admittedly badly damaged by the 2nd Peaceful Barbarian War as well as many Valian Lords. Saen had the wavering support of the Seaholds, some Valian Lords, and the Riverlands apart from Oakyield City who saw the conflict as a possible path to independence from the Sanchilian stranglehold. He needed more support. At the time the Karstlands was a mass of major and minor lords, constantly at war and declared 'ungovernable' by the state. Saen approached some and was in particular struck by the lord of Matrohb Castle, one Lord Harnce. Saen supported the Harnce's expansionist aims and all raised a small Royal army to side with the Lord as he tried to subdue the eastern and southern karstlands to Saen's side. 'First battles' While Aureon raised a vast Royal army on Round Island, open warfare erupted in the northeast. With the Sealander army, a small Royal army he raised from volunteers and a large enough Riverish army from Lord Sanchil, Saen assaulted Port Riversea. The walls of the port town were manned only by townsfolk with spears and scythes. Lord Houyton had sent reinforcements of hardened troops from Eastrock to the town but they were too slow. Saen built catapults and ladders. In a dawn assault, he breached the wooden walls and poured cavalry into the town as well as sending his more elite, well armoured men up the walls to take the lightly armed peasants by surprise. Rivermouth castle had foolishly been garrisoned with less than 50 men, the majority of them being on the walls and ladder went through the breach and straight to the castle to scale the ramparts and take the only really defensible place left. Many of riversea's civilians were put to the sword- all those who had borne arms, but many more were spared and the city wasn't sacked as badly as it could have been given precedents from cities which didn't yield. The first rebel settlement taken, Saen moved eastwards. Most of the original army of Lord Houyton had been sent to relieve Riversea but hadn't made it in time. Halfway between Seacitadel and Riversea, Saen ambushed the seven hundred man army with a few thousand. He chose his ambush site at a point where the road went down a gulley between two bluffs. He stationed archers and javeliners on the bluffs and peppered the enemy with missiles. As they tried to climb the bluffs to take out the missile troops, Saen's line infantry: spearmen and axemen as well as some Royal legionnaire troops, stepped out in front of them. Saen's cavalry then charged up the road and hit them in the rear and flanks and put them to flight. Huyton was left without a proper field army and Saen laied siege to the city of Eastrock. Eastrock had stone walls but would starve eventually. In the meantime Lord Janon Harnce had been bending the various karstlords to his will, mostly without fighting. The ancient city of Karstus on the life of the east was the only place left. It had been occupied by Royal troops loyal to Aureon. Saen came marched down along the Great Water with a thousand men, leaving the rest under Lord Lichus to besiege Eastrock. Saen's men and Janon's united outside the walls of Karstus, making a grand total of five thousand men. Inside the city were three thousand, well trained, veteran, Royal legionnaires. Behind thick stone walls, they would withstand any assault that was thrown at them. But then the people of Karstus rose. With knife and hammer, pitchfork and scythe, they set light to the Royal barracks and massacred five hundred as they emerged coughing from their beds. They opened the gates and took the walls, attacking unready men who were only looking outwards. The Saenite army marched into the city and with the people, put the foreign invaders to the sword. The karstic people were liberated by a karstic army in their eyes. In the Ancient capital city of the Lordship of Salt and Stone, Saen believed it was right and proper to declare his intents. Before the eyes of gods and men, in Fire Square in the centre of Karstus City, Saen Imperator declared himself first son of Thalron the Great and the true tenth King of Eris. The game was set and match made, but it was Aureon's move. 'First Offensive' Whilst Saen was taking the northeast by storm, Aureon was meticulously pushing out his sphere of influence in the south and massing two huge armies. Aureon's first army was landed at the mouth of the feeder river from Round Island over the duration of a month while the second army marched across the Imperial Bridge and up the Life of the East, gathering the levies of lords along the way. Talks of rebellion in Oakyield city were rife among the riverlands. The Diamond of the West was key to Saen's static line if not to his overall plan. He could afford a neutral Oakyield but not one on Aureon's side. After his crowning he rode hard and visited many places across the Karstlands and riverlands on his way. He arrived in Oakyield with most of his army still divided between marching west and besieging Eastrock. In Oakyield he got a tumoltuos welcome. He stayed five days and left feeling all chance of rebellion was quashed. Just north of the city itself he met with the Lords Dace, Dacental, Vulmar, Yrymar and Gastaeas, the major lords of the north. They stated they'd stay neutral though after much talk. But Saen had hit a major bump. All of his lord's armies had dispersed: the Sealanders army was keeping the rebels bottled up in Eastrock, the Karstic army was still massively divisive and spread throughout the karstlands and Karstus and the main part of the riverlanders army had been headed home to suppress any thoughts of rebellions. There was also a feeling that war was done for some time. Saen had no real plans for after he'd secured lands loyal to him and didn't want to fight his brother directly even after everything. The only force actually fully under his command was his small Royal army, completely made up of volunteers, some green boys and some veterans from absolutely everywhere, and his knights. In the spring of that year, the first Royal army arrived at enemy held territory. It was under the command of Saen's younger brother, the infantry commander Betruare. The Vale was too divided and shifty for it to take on but it eliminated Lord Gatereon's field army outside Valehall Keep and left the castle under heavy siege by local valians loyal to Aureon. An advance force of two thousand rushed up the Feeder ahead of the main force which took it's time in subduing surrounding areas after the victory at Valehall. Waterswatch was besieged by this force as it's armies were abroad. Saen managed to link up with his army coming from the east and break the First Siege without a fight by advancing with superior numbers. The breaking allowed Forktown below the castle to be evacuated and for men to pour in to garrison the Seat of the Riverlands well with a thousand five hundred men. Waterwatch was surrounded by three rivers and had more river navy strength then anywhere else so could not really be put under siege in the manner other places could: it could be supplied. Nonetheless the main body arrived, started the Second Siege of Waterswatch and left Lord Sanchil in his castle without the men to relieve himself. Saen was in many places during this time but was often to be found upriver in Wellsbridge. If Waterswatch fell, it could well mean the end of Saen's hopes. A starving Eastrock surrendered to Lord Lichus' forces and Lord Huoyton was put to death and relieved of titles. Over 60% of the population of the city had died from starvation and disease. Lord Lichus won much favour back by plying the starving people inside the city with free food after they submitted to him. Lord Lichus did not have all that large a field arrmy though and had to enforce law and order in his lands. On top of this, he wasn't sure if he wanted to get any further involved with Saen, who appeared to be about to suffer a grievous defeat. Meanwhile, the Second Royal Army under Commander Sir Eoiwn Cartus moved on Karstus. 'Battle of Dunmoughlin and the Karstic Revival ' As Sir Cartus moved up the Great Water with his huge Royal Army of seven thousand men, Lord Janon Harnce was gathering men all throughout the Karstlands. As Eoiwn prepared his men to march into enemy territory at Summerwood, Janon was massing his men at Karstus. After a century of depression, no unity and being told that their land was ungovernable and not worth governing in any case, Old Karstia finally had a cause and a feeling of revivalism and pride swept the rockylands. The cry that the ancient enemy, the summermen, were invading brought thousands to the full moon black banner which Harnce now crossed with their green and blue. For the first time in a hundred and fifty years, on the fields of Dunmouglin under a blazing sun, a Karstian pike phalanx army, of karstians for karstians, defeated a numerically superior army against which they should have had no chance. Buoyed on victory, and swamped with recruits, the Karstians invaded the eastern Vale. The Ironcastle guarding the eastern pass was held by the Earl of Ironcastle under Lord Stavaltheon loyal to Saen luckily. The Karstic swept through the eastern vale towards Waterswatch. 'Battle at the Wells and Oakyieldian Rebellion' But news of the Karstic victory was a long time coming west. The castle at waterswatch was besieged by five thousand men, the remaining 3,000 in Betruare's Royal Army subduing the Vale. Saen managed to gather together 3,700 troops at Wellsbridge with which to break the siege, 1,500 men being within the castle. His troops were a mix of volunteers and green levies, veterans and militia. His cavalry were extremely weak, a mere 200 riders and 230 knights. In contrast, Betruare had 1,300 Royal Cavalry, though he was an infantry commander and Saen a cavalry general. 500 of Saen's men were Riverish Halberdiers, elite infantrymen wielding a weapon that was a fiendish mixture between an axe and a spear. A further 300 halberdiers were in the castle. As Saen moved down the river wells to relieve the siege, Betruare lifted his siege and moved northwards so that he would not face the combined force. The 1,500 under Lord Sanchil in the castle dared not pursue them as they would be easily ridden down by Betruare's 1,300 cavalry. A day and a half north of Waterwatch, the forces of the two brothers faced each other by the banks of the Wells. A riverfleet from the castle had brought 200 archers and 300 halberdiers north but had to be wary of Betruare's light artillery, having already lost 30 men to a ballista. Saen used the river to secure his right flank and deployed his 800 halberdiers at his left, his basic infantry stretching across between them with his missile troops behind them and cavalry at the rear. Betruare's army was more elite, seasoned from campaigning in the Vale and well drilled on Round Island, his cavalry superior. Betruare advanced his force and eventually charged it into Saen's line, infantry fighting infantry in a matched battle. Saen crashed his cavalry into Betruare's left flank, routing a part of his line and Betruare sent his 1,300 horsemen straight at Saen's cavalry, aiming to roll up his whole flank and crush his army. Saen withdrew his riders and let Betruare's horse crash into his halberdiers. Cavalry do not fare well against polearms and though the halberdmen were eventually annihilated, 900 of Betruares Royal Cavalry fell that day. Saen used his cavalry to support his main line but numerical superiority was with his brother and when the halberders were eventually dispatched, his line collapsed. Saen's cavalry fled upriver, his infantry mostly onto the riverboats or into the countryside. The Battle of the Wells was extraordinarily bloody, 3,000 men dying out of forces numbering 9,000 men.These figures are somewhat skewed by the fact that due to the cold and disease almost all of the wounded men died. Saen's army was defeated that day and news of Dunmoughlin was a while in the telling. At Saen's seemingly imminent defeat, the lords of Oakyield City rebelled against their lords the Sanchils and joined the side of the Aureonists. Oakyield city's rebellion opened a new front against Saen, cost him potential levies and most importantly robbed him of a vast supply of monies. At the news of Oakyield's rebellion, Hilte firmly planted itself on Aureon's side, negotiating a deal wherein the Dale fleet would land Aureon's massive Third Army off the Oaken Coast and Hiltian troops would join it in return for the keepings of all privileges. 'Taking of the Vale and the coming of the Karstians' Janon Harnce was a long time coming in putting the eastern vale to rights but his ranks swelled all the time. Eventually he brought seven thousand men to the field at Valehall Keep, breaking it's siege. The army besieging Waterswatch meanwhile was forced to retreat south to avoid being surrounded. Betruare's Second Army was reunited at Northgard but had to flee westwards as the Karstian army approached from the south and the Saenite-Riverish army, now numbering a 3,500 approached from the north. Betruare tried to flee the Vale to along the feeder to get reinforcements from Taeranyus Rock but a force of 200 Saenite knights galloped around Betruare's army and seized the fortress at southgard, repelling attempts to take it. Thus Betruare's army was trapped between the Mountains of Hilte, the Feeder River, Southgard fortress and the converging Karstian-Saenite-Valian-Riverrish forces. 11,000 men faced 7,000. Saen starved the aureonist force for a week before attacking. Betruare broke out with 300 cavalry and fled westwards but 4,000 of the Aureonists were captured, 2,000(many fleeing to the river and drowning or being cut down by arrows below the southgard) killed and the rest fled. 2,500 of the captured men agreed to fight for Saen, the rest were incarcerated in a prison camp called Southgard Camp. All the Vale was now Saen's, disloyal lords having fled with their hosts out the west pass or over or into the mountains. 'Interim Period ' After the destruction of the first and second Royal armies, both kings went on a recruiting spree. Saen gathered men at Karstus, Waterswatch, Seacitadel, Matrohb Castle and Valehall Keep and trained them to be Royal Soldiers. He also had his lords raise units themselves, specifically karstic pikemen and riveran halberdiers. He raised a force of cavalry himself at forktown, knights and riders both. He set the cities under his control to smelting weapons and armour and even traded with the Great Nations for specialist weapons such as oil and artillery pieces. He built a fleet of ships at Karstus capable of defending the northern half of the Great Water and another fleet at Waterswatch capable of defending the rivers. He also garrisoned the borders well- Karstus, chriochtir, southgard, fathertown and waterswatch being the main places receiving his attention. Meanwhile, Aureon was building his greatest army yet. Royal Isle and the Lakeside were hives of activity training and recruiting. All the great cities of the south, Tharwoord, Summerwood, Lordwatch, Tirnavigae, Ilynaehal, Blackport and Southceil were manufacturing weaponry and ships for Aureon. As well as Royal Army recruits, Summerish infantry, Taeranyan clansmen, Hiltian militia and Querlian skirmishers were being drafted in. Archers and cavalry aplenty and lavish Royal Artillery spendings were dished out. This period saw little actual fighting, Summerwood was well garrisoned and that was about it. A force of 3,000 led by Lord Artontheon of the Vale foolishly tried to take Taeranyus Rock with its garrison of 400.He should have learned from history, the greatest fortress in Eris does not easily fall. Near all of his men were killed trying to escape the thick forest after his assault was crushed. Oakyield city had the Oaken Guard of 6,000 as well as an army of 4,000 and massively thick walls, though Saen was probably building towards an army capable of assaulting it. A skirmish out towards Bzylaq Hold by 1,000 cavalry archers from the Vale was similarly repulsed but with notably far fewer casaulties. 'Third Army Offensive' Aureon's Third Royal Army departed for the Oaken coast in a number of ways. Many men were landed on the dry coast near to Bzylaq Hold and marched across to the Dale, up the Dale pass and towards Oakyield. The Hiltian levies left from Dihiltir and marched across the desert via the Keep of the Dry Plains to the Dale. The remaining troops were sealifted from Round Island and Querl to Coastly Castle on the Oaken Coast by the Black, Hiltian, Dale and Royal Fleets in a masive logistical operation. It was not difficult for Saen's scouts to notice a considerable massing of troops in the Oakyieldian environs but they also noticed many troops landing off the dry coast which led him to expect and assault on the Vale also and to split his forces. Aureon ended up with some 35,000 men at Oakyield not including his navy. Aureon himself came with his Royal Army on a ship. Saen meanwhile, brought around 32,000 men to the field, not a massive difference in troops. Aureon set up his headquarters at the town of Singron, a town under oaken rule just southwest of the Fatherwater river. Saen meanwhile set up his banner at Fathertown, a town under Sanchilian rule on the south bank of the Fatherwater. The towns were less than a days march apart. 'Battle of Singron' The Battle at Singron was horrifically bloody. Saen marched out with his troops to attack Singron, Aureon marched out to meet him. Between the two towns, nearer to Singron, the two kings set up their camps on opposing hills. Another two facing hills southwest of the hqs were occupied by the opposite sides. A fifth hill to the west was contested. All hills gave views of superiority over the battlefield which was the valley between them. Artillery and archers rained fire from the hills as men and horses struggled in the mud below. Tactic matched tactic and missiles fell on both sides alike. The fifth hill was taken by Saen who's artillerymen managed to set up a few catapults and ballistae on it, before an Aureonite raid lit their oil supply on fire and turned the whole hill into a blazing torch. There was no real winner at Singron, darkness fell and both sides withdrew, making a treaty for the collection of the wounded. Losses were pretty much equal for either side. Nearly all the men who fought at Singron were scarred by the experience of so much death and gore. It seemed inevitable that a settlement would come out of such understanding and a five-day truce was agreed on. Twenty eight thousand men were to die on the slopes of Singron. Ten thousand would be wounded to such a degree that they would be disabled for life. 'Battle at Fathertown' But Aureon did not keep his word. After a mere night's rest for his followers, Aureon marched on Fathertown. The alarm of his approach was raised a mere half hour before his arrival outside the walls. His force's minor numerical superiority meant more after the losses of so many men and he rightfully guessed that he could take Saen by surprise. Saen delivered an empassionate speech in Fathertown square saying that if he could stand not to fight he would but that they all faced death if they did not stand. He condemned Aureons breaking of the truce but said 'I wish not to fight, but if we fight hard today, it will be the last time we will have to'. Aureon bombarded the town with his artillery pieces, breaching the walls in numerous places and setting the town alight. By the light of the burning town, Saen rallied his forces before the settlement and charged Aureon's lines. Fighting continued for hours but the major break came when Saen, with 500 of his cavalry charged the Royal Encampment, leading Aureon to flee with his escort before his twin brother. At the sight of their king abandoning them, Aureon's army broke and scattered. Many fled into the Watermount Hills and Ring of the Wells or to the Vale. Many fled back to Oakyield or Singron. Many more surrendered. Aureon's position was now untenable due to his shortage of men. He fled to his ships and sailed back to Round Island, vowing to raise yet another Royal Army to crush Saen. Oakyield city he left to be besieged by Saen's forces with no hope of relief. It eventually surrendered to relatively lenient terms. 'Saen's Offensive' Originally Saen made plans to attack the Dale of the Sealords as Hilte was on Aureon's side but after his defeat at the hands of Saen, Hiltia was prepared to bend the knee, though not to come into the war on Saen's side. With this peace of mind, Saen took the slow route to Royal Isle, sending a flurry of letters to his brother begging him to surrender. In the summer of 121 AS, Saen marched his force slowly along the emerald blue shores of Rounding Bay. The Black Fleet of Querl was still Aureon's as well as vast majority of the Royal Fleet; Saen did not have a chance at landing troops on Round Island. His plan was to march through the Aureonite-held Summerlands, imposing his authority as he went, and cross over to Round Island via the Imperial Bridge across the narrow strait between the island and the Manthine peninsula. Lord Cartus of Summerwood didn't even bother marshalling his forces to fight an even field battle with King Saen, he saw Aureon's cause as a lost one but was too proud to surrender. Instead he drew his troops inside his capital city, while leaving enough forces outside to defend key castles and cities throughout his lands. Saen sent half his forces in the south, almost twenty thousand men, to assail Summerwood which was held by five thousand of Cartus' men. After a week-long siege and building of towers,ladders and catapults, Saen's forces under Lord Lichus assaulted the capital of the summerlands. three thousand attackers died to eight hundred defenders and the attack failed brutally. Ten thousand men were left to besiege the city, the rest rejoined the main force. Lordwatch was the next major city, but was held by a comparatively paltry thousand men. Two thousand seemed suffice to besiege it, it's defences being even more potent than those of Summewood. With ten thousand new recruits coming down from the Vale and rivalia and seven thousand from the karstlands, Saen could easily afford these depletions of his main force. Saen was surprised however by the number of men Aureon managed to field at his next major engagement. Thirty thousand, almost the same number he had fielded at Singron. These men were his last dregs however. twelve thousand were fully trained Royals though most unexperienced. The rest were a mixture ranging from half-trained to completely untrained levies. Saen's men were gradually taking the forts and laying siege to or storming the castles. At Bluefort, to the west of Tirnavigae, Aureon had his men drawn together in a manner that completely surprised Saen, from dispersed companies into a full army in a day. The force of a thousand actually on active siege of the force was cut to pieces by the an infantry front charge and an overwhelming pouring of the Royal Cavalry round the flanks, it was over in minutes. Saen's camp beginning a mile and a half away were roused from their slumber by the shouts of their own guards who saw what was going on. They assembled sleepily in rough order, sure it was just a raid. Reportedly some actually refused to don their armor, thinking it just a waste of time and ended up fighting in their sleepclothes. Surprise was massive upon seeing a battle-ready enemy army in full assembly on the field. In usual battle formation of the Saenites, the Karstian phalanx would take the centre, but here they were split up and largely ineffective. Saen's forces in this place numbered some thirty-six thousand at this stage, a small numerical advantage but not a significant one. The best they could do was form a rough line and advance out from their camp. The two armies haulted maybe twenty paces from each other, typical feature of legionnaire-style armies, and flung their spears. Neither force really had artillery, and the Saenite archers were ineffective enough, Aureon only had a thousand archers, though they made their presence known. In engaging each other, men used spears, shields and short swords in the most part. Some of the non-royal standard Saenites had more unconventional weapons like longswords, axes, pikes and halberds though. Aureon's cavalry crashed into Saen's left flank but failed to route hardened troops and got sucked into melee fighting and failed. Eventually the inexperience and lack of training of Aureon's men showed and they ran, to be cut apart and near-annihilated by Saen's cavalry, those who did not surrender. Fourteen thousand prisoners of war were taken at Bluefort and fifteen thousand were killed. Ten thousand Saenites fell though: Bluefort was some sort of success for Aureon; it showed he could still field forces and inflict serious damage on Saen's army. 'Fall of Aureon' Despite Aureon's shown ability to inflict damage on Saen's armies, especially at the choke points that the Imperial Peninsula and Bridge would create, defeat was shown to be imminent by Lord Octhlas' surrender. The Overlord of Querl landed by Saen's army on a ship with black sails. He said he could no longer deny Saen's right to kingship by divine conquest and that he hoped the whole affair could be done with as quickly as possible. Now Saen could fight Aureon on the sea and would not have to take the bridge route, over which his forces would die in the tens of thousands. Lord Haoyle of Southceil, one of Aureon's most prominent supporters realised he would be cast out into the cold if not worse under Saen's rule. He acted in one of the most vicious episodes of the entire war. The Kingskeep massacre was perfectly plotted and executed. Haoyle made sure his own men were on guard duty and locked all the gates of the Capital Keep. Men outside could do nothing as they were equipped to defend, not assault, one of the greatest fortresses in Eris. Men in the barracks possibly loyal to Aureon were massacred. King Aureon was seized by two of Haoyle's men and died by Haoyle's own hand. Worse, Prince Petron, Aureon's young son, was slaughtered. a thousand of Haoyle's men marched to the gates of Kingskeep to escort him out. As rumour ran as rife as uncertainty, Haoyle went with Petron and Aureon's heads and his legion to the coast, from where he took a ship with yellow sails to Saen's camp and presented him with the heads. With one blow of his sword, Saen took Lord Haoyle's head from his shoulders. Saen had won but at a dear cost to his family. A pro-Aureonite faction, though he was dead, vowed to fight to the their deaths. Non-hardliner Royalist troops, Imperial soldiers and civilian militia kept them from burning Royal Isle city and confined them to the Kingskeep. Saen made to settle down for a long siege then sent his most experienced troops, karstians, seaholders, rivermen,valians, northern,summrish and islic volunteers all, over the walls by night. The thousand hardliners, despite holding the great capital fortress, were all killed to a hundred of Saen's. Saen settled down to his kingship, proving to be a good king, brooking no nonsense from anyone and reigning over a relatively peaceful era after his war of succession. He died of natural causes in 147 AS at an old age. Category:Eris